Archive for the 'Brett Festerling' Tag Under 'Ducks' Category

For those not entirely familiar with newly acquired Ducks center Maxim Lapierre, here is a YouTube compilation video (set to Pearl Jam) of the former Montreal Canadien. Lapierre is regarded as an agitator who can score on occasion and is expected to fill a depth forward position for the Ducks. He was acquired Friday for defenseman Brett Festerling and a fifth-round pick in 2012.

The video is more than a year old but gives the viewer a general idea of Lapierre's game.

The Ducks are set to acquire grinding forward Maxim Lapierre from the Montreal Canadiens for defenseman Brett Festerling and a fifth-round pick in 2012, according to ESPN.com's Pierre LeBrun.

LeBrun posted the details of the trade on his Twitter account. [UPDATE: The Ducks have confirmed the transaction as of 2 p.m. PST.]

The 6-foot-2, 207-pound Lapierre, 25, brings some size and grit to the Ducks as he had a team-leading 63 penalty minutes in 38 games with the Canadiens. Lapierre has shown some occasional scoring touch as he has five goals and three assists this season and had career-best numbers of 15 goals and 28 points in 2008-09.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Among the uncertainties that surround the Ducks in this transitional season, Jonas Hiller didn't figure to be one of them.

Hiller enters 2010-11 as the undisputed No. 1 goalie and he seemed to have his game ready after solid outings in the team's final two exhibition games against Vancouver and the Kings. But he was noticeably off in his first regular-season start Friday night as Detroit beat him twice on the short side in the Red Wings' 4-0 victory Friday night.

Johan Franzen finished off a give-and-go play with Valtteri Filppula as Hiller failed to slide over quick enough and square up against the big winger. Mike Modano also beat him 24 seconds later with a wrist shot through a screen provided by Dan Cleary.

There were a number of things that went wrong in Ducks' defeat but Hiller acknowledged his own shortcomings.

"It was definitely not the start I wanted," Hiller said. "The first one was kind of a tic-tac-toe play and I was late. Second one, I couldn't find the puck. Definitely not the way you want to start a game."

In response to the injury to Andy Sutton, the Ducks have recalled defenseman Brett Festerling from American Hockey League affiliate Syracuse.

Festerling played in Syracuse's season opening 3-2 loss at Lake Erie on Friday night and had four penalty minutes. He had three assists with a plus-1 rating and 15 penalty minutes in 42 games with the Ducks last season.

Sutton fractured his thumb after he got into a tussle with Detroit's Ruslan Salei in the second period of Friday's 4-0 loss to the Red Wings. A timetable for his recovery is not known.

That would mean that first round draft pick Cam Fowler would make the team out of training camp, a big statement for Fowler and the organization.

Coach Randy Carlyle all but conceded that Fowler, 18, will be with the squad for possibly the first nine games of the regular season before the organization decides whether to send him back to his junior team.

If he plays a 10th game, the first year of his entry-level contract would be triggered.

The Ducks have put defensemen Brett Festerling and Danny Syvret on waivers Thursday and it can be a possible sign that the move strengthens Cam Fowler's chances of making the team out of training camp.

Teams have until 9 a.m. PT on Friday to claim either player. It is very possible that both Festerling and Syvret will go unclaimed and the Ducks can retain their rights.

Festerling and Syvret are vying for one of the open spots on the blue line, which figures to have Lubomir Visnovsky, Andy Sutton, Sheldon Brookbank, Luca Sbisa and Paul Mara locked in. Both players are on two-way contracts and could wind up being sent to Syracuse, the Ducks' AHL affiliate, if they clear waivers.

Fowler, the club's top pick in this year's draft, has been given a serious look by the Ducks in camp as he's been in four of the five exhibition games thus far. The 18-year-old has two assists but was also a minus-2 in 18 minutes Tuesday night against the Kings in an 8-3 loss.

Brett Festerling has played the equivalent of one full NHL season and his numbers are about what you would expect for a young defensive-minded rearguard -- no goals, eight assists and a plus-6 rating over 82 games.

Now the Quesnel, B.C. native has to hope that his next 82 games will come over a single season.

Festerling, 24, has been in the Ducks' system since he was signed as an undrafted free agent in 2005. In that time, he has finished out his junior career and logged his share of time in the American Hockey League.

In the last two seasons, Festerling has essentially spent half of each with the Ducks where he has taken on the role as a young depth defenseman mostly on the third pairing with occasional spot appearances alongside Scott Niedermayer. But this might be his best opportunity yet to land a regular role as the club current has just three other proven NHL defensemen under contract.

You have to think that Festerling wants to be more than a fallback option.